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| Left to right: David Kelly, Jennie Greenberry, Jordan Barbour. Photo courtesy Jenny Graham and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. |
Though OSF has a positive track record with classic
musicals, the decision to include Disney’s Beauty
And The Beast as part of their 2017 season was nonetheless worrying. Would
the theatre festival be able to find new meaning in a Disney musical?
Fortunately, director Eric Tucker and a talented cast and technical team knocks
Beauty and the Beast out of the park,
moving from the bright colors of the original animated movie to a darker, more
elegant visual style that makes special use of the live theatre format to tell
its story.
The gradually defrosting relationship between Belle (Jennie
Greenberry), a bold, intellectual girl who yearns for something more than her
provincial French village, and the Beast (Jordan Barbour), a cursed prince who
must find love to free himself from his monstrous form, sits at the core of the
show. Greenberry’s Belle is reasonably faithful to the original movie: Though
she’s technically the Beast’s captive, she maintains social control over their
relationship for much of the musical. Barbour’s interpretation of the Beast
draws from his origin story as a prince, employing a mix of arrogance and
social ineptitude. He may have a lot to learn before he can be worthy of Belle,
but his slow climb towards understanding is one of the most heartwarming parts
of the play.
The supporting cast assembles a larger-than-life group of
wildly entertaining characters. James Ryen plays the part of Gaston, a
swaggering hunter who serves as the story’s main antagonist. Besides getting
the best physical comedy in the play, Ryen is able to generate a surprisingly
intense feeling of danger: He comes off as stupid for the most part, but his
ability to manipulate and threaten is top-notch. All of the transformed objects
in the Beast’s castle provide hilarious performances: The conflict between the
uptight Cogsworth (Daniel T. Parker) and courteous Lumiére (David Kelly) is a
delight to watch.
What separates the OSF production of Beauty and the Beast from its other stage and movie counterparts is
its visual aesthetic. The set (designed by Christopher Acebo) doesn’t use
static elements, but instead uses ensemble members carrying props to give
the feeling of a location. This allows for greater use of motion; when Belle is
given a tour of the castle, for example, the cast moves doors and windows in a
circle to give the illusion of movement. Ana Kuzmanic’s costumes for the
transformed objects convey the nature of the character without sacrificing
elegance; Lumiére’s outfit, which employs gloves covered with LED lights,
deserves special attention.
OSF’s 2017 rendition of Beauty
and the Beast repackages one of the classic stories from the Disney canon
with mature, daring visuals that change the way we understand it. The
production ranks with fascinating OSF productions like Guys and Dolls and My Fair
Lady as part of OSF’s commitment to find new meaning in some of America’s
most classic musicals.
Beauty and the Beast runs until October 15th.
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Beauty and the Beast runs until October 15th.
Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
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